It's Coming!

 A New Year is right around the corner! A brand new clean calendar! It is up to each one of us what we do with it. Each year I take the same basic goals with a possible extra or two tossed in for good measure. I prefer to use "goals" instead of "resolutions" because I feel that I am taking already important things in my life and putting my focus on strengthening them.

 

1. To make an effort to learn something new everyday. The joy of knowledge is indeed a blessing no matter what you choose to learn.

 

2. To make time for myself. It is amazing what 15 minutes sitting on the deck with a hot cup of coffee and watching the birds can do for my soul. A little time each day to refresh my spirit is all it takes.

 

3. To take time to appreciate each day. Too often we forget to see the beauty around us and take the simple things for granted. My continued goal is to look with my eyes but to see with my heart.

 

4. To enjoy my family and friends. I am lucky to have each one of them in my life.

 

5. To remember. So many people have come and gone from my life over the years and I want to keep their memories alive.

 

6. To keep my faith alive and growing stronger each day.

 

7. Organize and Simplify! Organize does not mean that I have to go on a cleaning spree each day. It just means that I need to get my life in some sort of manageable order so that I am not constantly feeling overwhelmed. Simplify. Just what it says. Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill and take life one day at a time.

 

8.  A Random Act of Kindness. Like so many others, I was raised to do them. Only back then, they were called "manners". I challenge myself to make RAKs a regular part of my days. Whether it be opening a door for someone. Taking a grocery cart back into the store. Buying someone a cup of coffee or just a smile to make someone's day a little brighter.

 

9. To Forgive. Things happen and often we are left with feelings of anger and hurt. Too often the people who cause these feelings don't even know or just don't care. We are the ones left feeling bitter. I will let the past remain in the past and let go of those feelings so that I can move on.

 

10. To use kind words and patience more often. If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all.

 

And of course, I always add some personal goals just for me.

 

1. To keep the joy in my hobbies.

 

2. To journal more often.

 

3. To spend more time with my stitching

 

4. Keep my blog up to date.

 

5. Take more trips. Even a day trip can refresh the soul.

 

6. Enjoy each day!

 

7. Work on my Stitching Bucket List

 

8. Catch up some of my WIPs

Until next time may you have simple days and an uncluttered heart

A New Year

This is the same post I make every year at the end of the year. Sometimes I adjust it depending on my needs or life situation. So far it has worked well for me.

A New Year is right around the corner! A brand new clean calendar! It is up to each one of us what we do with it. Each year I take the same same basic goals with a possible extra or two tossed in for good measure. I prefer to use "goals" instead of "resolutions" because I feel I am taking already important things in my life and putting my focus on strengthening them.

1. To make an effort to learn something new every day. The joy of knowledge is indeed a blessing no matter what you choose to learn.

2. To make time for myself. It's amazing what 15 minutes sitting on the deck with a hot cup of coffee and watching the birds can do for my soul. A little time each day to refresh my spirit is all it takes.

3. To take time to appreciate each day. Too often we forget to see the beauty around us and take the simple things in life for granted. My continued goal is to look with my eyes but to see with my heart. To enjoy life and all that is a part of it.

4. To enjoy my family and friends. I am lucky to have each and every one of them in my life.

5.  Organize and Simplify! Two key words I always yearn to make a part of my everyday routine but often lose focus on. Organize does not mean that I have to go on a cleaning binge each day. It just means that I need to get my life and things that are a part of my life in some sort of manageable order so that I feel comfortable instead of constantly overwhelmed.Not putting things off until the last minute can contribute greatly to this cause. Simplify! Just what it means - plain and simple! Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill. Do what I can and leave the rest. Don't take on more than I can handle or that will leave me stressed out.

6. To remember. So many people have come and gone from my life over the years and I want to keep their memories alive.

7. To keep my faith alive and strong.

8. A Random Act of Kindness. Like so many others, I was raised to do them. Only back then they were called "manners" or just plain "consideration for others". So many people still do these and without even realizing it. For the New Year coming up, I challenge myself along with each and every one of you to make RAKs a regular part of your life and to become more aware of them. Whether it means opening a door for a person, buying a stranger a cup of coffee, taking the grocery cart back inside the store or something else. Let us all strive to bring back those values and in doing so we will give back and make someone's day a little brighter.

9. To Forgive. Things happen that cause hurt, anger and resentment but often the people who cause these feelings don't know or just don't care. We are the ones left with the bitter feelings that only mount up and make us more and more miserable. I will let the past remain in the past and let go of these feelings so that I can move on with my life.

10. To use kind words and patience more often. I will try to live by the good old standard rule "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all".

And of course the New Year would not be complete without some fun goals!

1. Take more trips. Even a day trip can be fun.

2. No pressure. Keep the fun and joy in my hobbies. After all, that is why I started them.

3. Take more pictures

4. Continue to write in my gratitude journal

5. To blog regularly

6. To work on my Stitching Bucket List this year

7. Work on my stack of WIPs this year

8. Work on some Christmas stitching

Have a safe and Happy New Year. Thanks for stopping by! Until next time may you have simple days and an uncluttered heart.

Goodbye 2018

This is the same post I make every year at the end of the year. Sometimes I adjust it depending on my needs or life situation. So far it has worked good for me.

A New Year is right around the corner! A brand new clean calendar! It is up to each one of us what we do with it. Each year I take the same basic goals with a possible extra or two tossed in for good measure. I prefer to use "goals" instead of "resolutions" because I feel I am taking already important things in my life and putting my focus on strengthening them.

1. To make an effort to learn something new every day. The joy of knowledge is indeed a blessing no matter what you choose to learn.

2. To make time for myself. It's amazing what 15 minutes sitting on the deck with a hot cup of coffee and watching the birds can do for my soul. A little time each day to refresh my spirit is all it takes.

3. To take time to appreciate each day. To often we forget to see the beauty around us and take the simple things in life for granted. My continued goal is to look with my eyes but to see with my heart. To simply enjoy life and all that is part of it.

4 To enjoy my family and friends. I am lucky to have each and every one of them in my life.

5. Organize and Simplify! Two key words I always yearn to make a part of my everyday routine but often lose focus on. Organize does not mean that I have to go on a cleaning binge each day. It just means that I need to get my life and things that are a part of my life in some sort of manageable order so that I feel comfortable instead of constantly overwhelmed. Not putting things off until the last minute can contribute greatly to this cause. Simplify! Just what it means - plain and simple! Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill. Do what I can and leave the rest. Don't take on more than I can handle or feel will leave me stressed out!

6. To remember. So many people have come and gone from my life over the years and I want to keep their memories alive.

7. To keep my faith alive and strong.

8. A Random Act of Kindness. Like so many others, I was raised to do them. Only back then they were called "manners" or just plain "consideration for others". So many people still do these and without even realizing it. For the New Year coming up, I challenge myself along with each and every one of you to make RAKs a regular part of your life and to become more aware of them. Whether it means opening a door for a person, buying a stranger a cup of coffee, taking the grocery cart back inside the store or something else. Let us all strive to bring back those values and in doing so we will give back and make someone's day a little brighter.

9. To Forgive. Things happen that cause hurt, anger and resentment but often the people who cause these feelings don't know or just don't care. We are the ones left with the bitter feelings that only mount up and make us more and more miserable. I will let the past remain in the past and let go of these feelings so that I can move on with my life

10. To use kind words and patience more often. I will try to live by the good old standard rule "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all".

And of course the New Year would not be complete without some fun goals!

1. Take more trips. Even a day trip can be fun.

2. No pressure. Keep the fun and joy in my hobbies. After all, that is why I started them.

3. Take more pictures.

4. Continue to write daily in my gratitude journal.

5. To blog more often.

6.  To work on my hand quilting.

Have a safe and Happy New Year. Thanks for stopping by! Until next time, may you have simple days and an uncluttered heart!

Happy New Year!

This is the same post I make almost every year. Sometimes I adjust it depending on my needs or life situation. So far it has worked for me.

A New Year is right around the corner! A brand new clean calendar! It is up to each one of us what we do with it. Each year I make the same basic goals with a possible extra or two tossed in for good measure. I prefer to use "goals" instead "resolutions" because I feel I am taking already important things in my life and putting my focus on strengthening them. 

1. To make an effort to learn something new every day. The joy of knowledge is indeed a blessing no matter what you choose to learn.

2. To make time for myself. It's amazing what 15 minutes sitting on the deck with a hop cup of coffee and watching the birds can do for my soul. A little time each day to refresh my spirit is all it takes.

3. To take time to appreciate each day. Too often we forget to see the beauty around us and take the simple things in life for granted. My continued goal is to look with my eyes but to see with my heart. To simply enjoy life and all that is part of it.

4. To enjoy my family and friends. I am lucky to have each and every one of them in my life.

5. Organize and Simplify! Two keys words I always yearn to make a part of my everyday routine but often lose focus on. Organize does not mean that I have to go on a cleaning rampage each day. It just means I need to get my life and things that are part of my life in some sort of manageable order so that I feel comfortable instead of constantly overwhelmed. Not putting things off until the last minute can contribute greatly to this cause. Simplify! Just what it means - plain and simple! Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill, do what I can and leave the rest, don't take on more than I can handle or feel will leave me stressed out!

6. To Remember. So many people have come and gone from my life over the past years and I want to keep their memory alive.

7.  To keep my faith alive and strong.

8. A Random Act of Kindness. Like so many others, I was raised to do them. Only back then they were called "manners" or just plain "consideration for others". So many people still do these and without even realizing it. For the New Year coming up, I challenge myself along with each and every one of you to make RAK's a regular part of your life and to become more aware of them. Whether it means opening a door for a person, buying a stranger a cup of coffee, taking the grocery cart back inside the store or something else. Let us all strive to bring back those values and in doing so we will give back and make someone's day a little brighter!

9. To Forgive. Things happen that cause hurt, anger and resentment but often the people who cause these emotions don't care. We are the ones left with bitter feelings that only mount up and make us more and more miserable. I will the let the past remain in the past and let go of these feelings so that I can move on with my life.

10. To use kind words and patience more often. I will try to live by the good old standard "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all".

And of course the New Year would not be complete without a few just plain fun goals!

1. Start taking more trips. Even day trips can be fun.

2. No pressure. Keep the fun and joy in stitching. This is why I started in the first place!

3. Take more pictures.

4. Continue to write in my gratitude journal daily.

5. To update my blog more often.

Have a safe New Year's Eve! Thanks for stopping by! Until next time, may you have simple days and an uncluttered heart!

Happy New Year !

Happy New Year! May 2010 bring lots of happiness, plenty of good health and loads of good fortune to one and all.

Here is my most recent progress photo of MHIBIG. I have done some more stitching on it since this picture so there is really more done than this.

Will this be the year of Hawk Run Hollow at our house? I have all 3 of my HRH patterns kitted up and ready to go. Since I consider myself a slow stitcher compared to so many others who seem to wield the needle faster than a speeding bullet, it may take me 5 years to finish all these up! I am giving myself that long because if I should finish them up sooner, I will be surprised and very pleased! Besides I know I will want to work on other designs along the way as well as these.

Yesterday I sat down with my 3 boxes of kitted up designs and made a list of the ones I would like to see finished this year. I would post the list here but I'm afraid I would be very embarrassed next December to see how little was actually achieved or I could be surprised at how much I actually did get done! Sort of a glass half full - glass half empty situation. I will just stitch as I can, when I can and enjoy it all.

We will be having our traditional southern New Year's meal today. We always have some type of pork (usually a pork roast) which symbolizes living high on the hog, Black Eyed Peas for luck, Collard Greens for wealth, Cornbread for humility and Tea for health. I will probably fix up a cobbler just because we're southern! LOL.

When we put away what few decorations we had displayed, we decided to downsize our Christmas inventory and put it all in one place. We really don’t put out very much anymore and I made a list of what I wanted to keep and use from now on. One place makes it all much easier to get to. It didn’t appear as though we had downsized as much as I had planned because the closet was really crammed full. Of course, I had to share it with Harold and some of his things plus I guess a lot of what we kept was just big and took up a lot of space. Wreaths, outdoor garlands and lights.

Once again, thanks for stopping by. Don't forget to leave a post on the December 28th post if you are interested in the giveaway. Happy New Year to everyone.

Almost Gone

This is the same post I make at the end of each year with a few changes here and there to suit the time of my life. It may get old to some but it works for me.

A New Year is right around the corner! A brand new clean calendar! It's up to each one of us what we do with it. Each year I make the same goals with a possible extra or two tossed in for good measure. I prefer to use "goals" instead of "resolutions" because I feel that I am taking already important things in my life and putting my focus on strengthening them.

1. To make an effort to learn something new every day. The joy of knowledge is indeed a blessing no matter what you choose to learn.

2. To make time for myself. It's amazing what 15 minutes sitting on the deck with a hot cup of coffee and watching the birds can do for my soul. A little time each day to refresh my spirit is all it takes.

3. To take time to appreciate each day. Too often we forget to see the beauty around us and take the simple things in life for granted. My continued goal is to look with my eyes but to see with my heart. To simply enjoy life and all that is a part of it.

4. To enjoy my family and friends. I am lucky to have each and every one of them in my life. I have been blessed with so many online friends and each day I am grateful for each one of you! My online stitching and blogging friends are a very important part of my life!

5. Organize and Simplify! Two key words I always yearn to make a part of my everyday routine but often lose focus on. Organize doesn't mean I have to go on a cleaning rampage each day. It just means I need to get my life and things that are a part of my life in some of manageable order so that I feel comfortable instead of constantly overwhelmed. Not putting things off until the last minute can contribute greatly to this cause! Simplify! Just what it means - plain and simple! Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill, do what I can and leave the rest, don't volunteer for more than I feel I can handle or feel will stress me out!

6. To Remember. So many people have come and gone from my life over the recent years and I want to keep their memory alive.
7. To keep my faith alive and strong.

And of course the New Year just wouldn't be complete without a few just plain fun goals!

1. Take more trips. Even day trips can be fun.

2. No pressure. Keep the fun and joy in stitching. This is why I started in the first place! I actually have several special projects planned for this year but will keep them a secret until I start.

3. Take more pictures.

4. Continue to have blog give a ways

5. Get back into life! Period. Plain and simple.

6. Work on home improvements. We have plenty to choose from!

Have a safe New Year's Eve! Thanks for stopping by! Until next time, may you have simple days and an uncluttered heart.

Remember to leave a comment on December 28 post if you are interesting in entering the giveaway!

Happy New Year

Good Morning and Happy New Year! Time to look over my monthly re-cap from December and list my new goals for January!

DECEMBER GOALS RECAP

1. Remain smoke free - YES
2. Exercise - YES
3. Work on WIPs - YES
4. Start a new stitch- YES
5. Work on primitives - YES
6. Work on some freebies - YES
7. Get BBQ feast for Christmas Day - No, I cooked
8. Work on building fabric stash - YES
9. Work on building Aida stash - YES
10. Work on building thread stash - YES
11. Keep blog updated - YES
12. Remember to rest eyes regularly - YES
13. Go to see my folks for holidays - YES
14. Family holiday get togethers - YES
15. Enjoy my birthday! - It was ok but I've had better!
16. Work on Delectable Mountain quilt - No, still building my fabric stash for it
17. Do at least one ornament for next Christmas - No. Just never got around to it
18. Frame at least one finished piece. - Yes

Focus Stitches
1. Wool and Flax - finished
2. And A Forest Grew - worked on

JANUARY MONTHLY GOALS

1. keep blog updated
2. Stitch on HOHRH
3. Remain smoke free
4. Start a new stitch
5. make my list of 2009 stitching and quilting goals
6. Stitch on AAFG
7. Stitch on Victoria's Quaker
8. Work on Delectable Mountain quilt
9. Stitch on ornaments
10. Eat healthy
11. Build on fabric stash
12. Build Aida stash
13. Build thread stash
14. Finish off a completed stitch
15. Exercise

Focus Pieces
1. Ornaments for 2009
2. And A Forest Grew

Wishing everyone a wonderful and Happy New Year filled with everything good!

I borrowed the PIF image from Lynn's blog. I hope she doesn't mind!

The winners of the drawing for PIF #1 (Notion and Thread PIF) are
1. Roberta
2. Ann

Please post a drawing for your own Notion/Thread PIF (along with the rules) on your blog and contact me with your mailing address so I can mail your PIF out within the next 365 days.

The rules will be as follows.

1. Send no less than 5 items per person.
2. Items can be DMC, other threads, stitching needles, straight pins, buttons, scissors, ribbons, ect, just use your imagination. You can send a combination of items such as 3 threads, 1 pack of straight pins and 1 pack of stitching needles or just 5 threads.
3. All I ask is that items be in new condition and not used.The rules will be as follows.

The winners of the drawing for PIF #2 (Fat Quarters PIF) are
1. Lynn
2. Mary

You will receive 2 Fat Quarters from me within the next 365 days. Please post a Fat Quarter PIF drawing on your blogs and "pass it forward" for the New Year! Contact me with your mailing address so I can send out your PIF within the year.

Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful New Year!

5-4-3-2-1

A New Year is right around the corner! A brand new clean calendar! It's up to each one of us what we do with it. Each year I make the same goals with a possible extra or two tossed in for good measure. I prefer to use GOALS instead of RESOLUTIONS because I feel that I am taking already important things in my life and putting my focus on strengthening them.

1. To make an effort to learn something new every day. The joy of knowledge is indeed a blessing no matter what you choose to learn.

2. To make time for myself. It's amazing what 15 minutes sitting on the deck with a hot cup of coffee and watching the birds can do for my soul. A little time each day to refresh my spirit is all it takes.

3. To take time to appreciate each day. Too often we forget to see the beauty around us and take the simple things in life for granted. My continued goal is to look with my eyes but to see with my heart. To simply enjoy life and all that is a part of it.

4. To enjoy my family and friends. I am lucky to have each and every one of them in my life. I have been blessed with so many online friends and each day I am grateful for each one of you! My online stitching friends are a very important part of my life!

5. Organize and Simplify! Two key words I always yearn to make a part of my everyday routine but often lose focus on. Organize doesn't mean I have to go on a cleaning rampage each day. It just means I need to get my life and things that are a part of my life in some of manageable order so that I feel comfortable instead of constantly overwhelmed. Not putting things off until the last minute can contribute greatly to this cause! Simplify! Just what it means - plain and simple! Stop making a mountain out of a mole hill, do what I can and leave the rest, don't volunteer for more than I feel I can handle or feel will stress me out!

6. To Remember. So many people have come and gone from my life over the years and I want to keep their memory alive.


And of course the New Year just wouldn't be complete without a few stitching, collecting, decorating and quilting goals!

1. Make a big dent in my stash this year!

2. No pressure. Keep the fun and joy in stitching. This is why I started in the first place!

3. Continue stitching on AAFG & hopefully finish(keep as Friday night SAT project until complete)

4. Get Victoria's Quaker out of UFO pile and resume working on it & hopfully finish

5. Have more blog give a ways

6. Try to start one new stitch a month (and hopefully finish one too)

7. Work on ornaments and holiday stitches

8. Take knitting lessons

Be sure to sign up for the PIF drawing on Sunday's post by 5PM EST if you interested. I will be posting the winning names on tomorrow's post.

Have a safe New Year's Eve! Thanks for stopping by!